Handbag-maker Mulberry (MUL) led these results by announcing the creation of a new, joint-business entity in South Korea with SHK Holdings. Mulberry will own 60 per cent of the new venture and will invest £3.1m of a total £4.6m to “purchase assets and develop the business”. Mulberry Korea, which will become operational this autumn, will be headquartered in Seoul, and will manage all retail distribution and digital fulfilment for the market.
But news of this further push into Asia wasn’t enough to disguise the fact that Mulberry isn’t performing so well on home turf. Although retail sales rose by a solid 3 per cent over the past year, growth in the UK was largely flat. Disappointing trading continued into the first 10 weeks of the new financial year, with like-for-like retail sales down 7 per cent. That reflects a 1 per cent rise across international markets and a 9 per cent contraction across the UK, with bosses blaming the domestic slump on lower footfall and fewer tourists.
Bloomberg consensus forecasts expect EPS of 11p for the year ending March 2019, compared with 10p in FY2018.
| MULBERRY (MUL) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 775p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 465m | |
| TOUCH: | 712-778p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,149p | LOW: 590p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.6% | PE RATIO: | 93 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 146p | NET CASH: | £25.1m | |
| Year to 31 Mar | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2014 | 163 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 5.0 |
| 2015 | 149 | 1.9 | -2.3 | 5.0 |
| 2016 | 156 | 6.2 | 4.5 | 5.0 |
| 2017 | 168 | 7.5 | 8.4 | 5.0 |
| 2018 | 170 | 6.9 | 8.3 | 5.0 |
| % change | +1 | -8 | -1 | |
| Ex-div: | 25 Oct | |||
| Payment: | 22 Nov |
